CHAPTER 1
Getting Started
"You can't fix a problem with the same consciousness that created it."
~ Albert Einstein
If you are anything like me, you have read tons of books that have given you the secret to success. They have told you all about how you can have anything that you want. But how do you go from believing in lack and living pay check to pay check to living a life of your dreams? How do you go from reading to manifesting? What steps do you take? How do you move from point A to point B when you are scared to death and filled with the belief that you are not worthy?
This, my friends was my dilemma. I read all the books, and I even did a few of the exercises in the books, but, truth be told I was just a little too smart to do them with real effort, feeling or determination. Every time I moved forward a step or two my conditioning just kept sucking me right back into my comfort zone. It took me many years of study and meditation to learn, really learn and believe that my life could be different and that we are all part of the Divine, yes even you and me. We are all Spiritual beings having a human experience. We all have a purpose in this world. We are here to live a joyful and happy life and honor our purpose. Our purpose is what brings joy into our life. We know that we are living on purpose when time just seems to fly by when we are doing what we love. To have a fulfilling life, it is most important that we live our bliss.
This book is part of my purpose. I believe that I am here to help others embrace their very own connection with Source. Once I started writing this book, things became more and more clear to me. This book has been Divinely guided from the start.
The first step to having and doing what you want is to first figure out what it is that you do want. Yes, as simple as that sounds most of us do spend our entire lives talking and thinking about what we don't want or what we are against. How many times a day do you hear yourself saying or thinking things like ...
I don't want to be broke.
I don't want to get stuck in traffic
I hope I don't get fired
I don't like to grocery shop.
I don't like my car.
I don't want to be fat.
I don't want to be late.
I don't want anything bad to happen.
I don't want to go there.
Does any of these sound like you? If you are like most of us, they do. It is a fact that people spend far too much time on what they don't want and far too little time thinking about what they do want. It is time to examine how much time you devote to the happy and joyful areas of your life?
Exercise One
What Do You Really Want?
"Everything's in the mind. That's where it all starts. Knowing what you want is the first step toward getting it." ~ Mae West
For the first exercise in this book your job is to write down all the things you "don't want." -You, Yes You, DO THIS NOW! If you are serious about changing your life do not be like I used to be and skip the exercises. You are worth taking the time to figure this out. Make a list, check it twice, and be sure that you have listed as many "don't wants" as you can.
For example:
I don't want to be late.
I don't want to be broke.
I don't want to be fat.
I don't want to go to my job.
I don't want this or that to happen.
Now, take your "don't want" list and turn those statements into "do want" statements. An easy way to do this is by writing your "don't wants" on a fresh sheet of paper and leaving one or two lines of space between each one. As you read your "don't want" statements simply think about what it is that you "do want" in its place.
For example: I don't want to be late. - I always get to my destination with plenty of time to spare. After you are done with your "don't wants" cross them out as a symbolic way to remove them from your life.
Once you have your "do wants" start practicing them all the time. Make it a priority to listen to yourself talk and catch yourself thinking about your "don't wants" and turn them into "do wants."
This is such an important first step. I know that you believe that you are worthy of Embracing your Unlimited Possibilities. So I know you will take the time to do this exercise. If for any reason you are struggling with your worthiness, please just trust me for awhile and go on my belief in your worthiness. You are a part of the Divine just like I am. We can have anything that we want if we are willing to align our thoughts and feelings to what we want. As Ester Hicks and Abraham say "get yourself in the vortex. Get in the flow of the good that you want in your life. Choose your high flying disk and ride it." What that means is; choose the thoughts that make you feel the best all of the time.
Controlling your thoughts does take discipline. Make a decision to do your best at listening to what you are saying and thinking ALL OF THE TIME! This is important! Your thoughts matter. In fact, they matter more than just about anything else. What are you thinking about yourself, the particular situation, and the world at large? It bears repeating here, your thoughts and your words matter. Choose the ones that make you feel the best. Sometimes this might seem hard to do. However, it is imperative that you do your best. Keep picking thoughts that make you feel better and better.
As you learn to choose the thoughts and words that make you feel good and you decide what it truly is that you want in your life, it is imperative that you stop waiting around for it to manifest. Many people get stuck at this point. They start to pay attention to the appearance of things and forget that in reality Source is perfect and simply waiting for us to align with what it is that we want.
This step of the process takes some self-discipline on your part. WOW ... who would have thought that I would be writing about self-discipline. Anything that has the word discipline in it used to make me cringe. However, I now know that it does take self-discipline to train yourself to think the right thoughts and to take action. It is time to start acting, thinking and feeling like all that you want is already here. We are going to discuss feelings further in a few chapters but for now just know that how you feel about things is just as important and perhaps more important than anything else.
The next step to getting started is just that: GET STARTED. It is time to do the work. Stop sitting on the runway revving your engines. It is time to fly now. Most of us let our fear get in the way of getting started. We read, we pray and we listen, and we wait for someone or something else to do it for us. I am here to say it does not work that way. You, my friend, MUST do the work. You can plan, and you can visualize, you can affirm and pray but in the end you must take action. You must make some kind of movement toward your goal. As they say "now it is time to walk in the direction of your prayers." Source is not a big giant vending machine in the sky that is going to pop out whatever it is that you want once you put enough prayers in. Now is the time to get outside of your comfort zone. Now is the time to trust the Divine plan and know that when you take a step more will be shown.
This is the time to trust yourself and Source. It is the time to take that first step in the direction of your prayers. It is up to you to believe that you can have what you want simply because you were born. It is up to you to listen to your Divine guidance, your intuition, your little voice. Whatever you want to call it, but listen, and take action you must.
It is also important to not be afraid to fail. In fact, just expect to fail on occasion. It is going to happen. Things will go wrong, you may misstep, you may even feel that you looked foolish. That is all OK many, many famous people have failed many more times than they succeeded. Failure is simply part of the game. It is not the failure itself that matters. It is what you do with the failure. Do you stop and freeze using a mistake or two to keep you stuck in your comfort zone, stuck in the mundane and mediocre or do you parlay the failure into knowledge and use that knowledge to do better the next time. The Universe always rewards action with feedback. Sometimes we get wonderful feed back and we know that we are on the right track. Sometimes we get BANG smack in the face feedback. Feedback like that might make us feel that we have failed if we don't have the right attitudes and beliefs. The negative feedback is actually the best, in my opinion. Negative feedback shows us where we can improve. You can't know good until you know bad. Negative feedback / failure gives you a track to run on. Now you know what doesn't work so you can try something different. Something better because you have some new knowledge.
Resistance Is Coming - But It Does Not Have to Stay
Some people would think it is a bit odd to talk about resistance so early in a book that is all about Embracing Your Unlimited Possibilities but take it to the bank that resistance is coming. We all deal with resistance, and I guarantee you that you will too. How you deal with the resistance will play a huge role in whether you allow yourself to fail or succeed. Yes, it is your choice to fail or succeed. Your life is not preordained by a mean, vengeful God up in the heavens that says "Johnny is a good boy he can have what he wants, but Susie, ah not so much. She said f__k too many times, and she did steal a candy bar once. She is doomed for failure."
Source gave us the gift of choice. No matter what you have ever been told, nothing, and I mean nothing has to be a certain way. You do not have to live in fear. I make you this guarantee; when you hear that little voice inside your head telling you that you can't do this or that, or that you're too stupid, or too old, or don't have the education, or the money or any other negative thought, know, without a doubt that this is not Source talking to you. That negative voice is not now, and never has been Source. That voice is your pesky ego believing it is trying to protect you when in fact it is simply holding you hostage to your fears and limitations. Your ego is the voice of your own fear speaking to you. The voice of your parents, your teachers, your clergy, your neighbors, your friends, or anyone else that owned those exact limiting beliefs and so kindly and with well-meaning instilled them into your thoughts.
Resistance comes up anytime that you confront issues that make you uncomfortable. It is natural to want to avoid pain and discomfort. Resistance can show itself in many ways. Perhaps you all of a sudden need to take a nap, or your mind simply wanders, or you suddenly remember a phone call that you just have to make (you haven't made it in the last 3 months but now you just have to.) Resistance is anything that comes up that gets you off-track. Resistance is fear and doubt. Fear creates self-sabotage, fear of rejection, fear of asking, fear of failure, fear of success, and fear of closing the deal. It is all fear and it is all False Evidence Appearing Real. How ever fear shows up in your life; it is sabotaging you and keeping you from living the life of your dreams, from living on purpose. Fear is tricking you into thinking that it is keeping you safe and inside your comfort zone. However, your comfort zone can get mighty uncomfortable. Fear is a lie, and you do not have to buy into it.
Each time that I got the message that I was supposed to write this book, I created such resistance in my life that along with other things I actually made myself physically sick. I was so afraid of this calling, so afraid of putting myself out there that I just did not want to hear that I could do this. My unbelievable fear of writing this book caused me to manifest a very serious ear challenge called a cholesteatoma that required major surgery. I found it to be very interesting that although this was extremely critical surgery they could not book my operation for two-months. Now I could have ranted and raved about this time lag but instead, I chose to use it to my advantage. I took this information as a sign from Source that I was being given a gift. It was time for me to really understand how crucial a part my thoughts and actions would play in the over all outcome. In preparation for surgery, I turned to Reiki to help me clear up the negativity and energy blocks in my life. I also spent several months before the operation meditating and visualizing myself healthy. The outcome was nothing short of miraculous, even though all of the scans showed things to be much worse before my energy work and meditation. After the surgery the doctors were very pleased all of the growth that was showing to be in my inner ear was not there anymore, they did not have to go into my inner ear and the surgery was much easier than the doctors expected. Isn't it wonderful what taking charge of your thoughts and learning to release resistance can do? I believe that I created my challenge so that I could learn from it. What a wonderful life we can have when we learn to trust Source and let It work its magic.
Resistance will come, but you have the choice to let it stay and ruin your life or kick it in the pants and send it to the curb. Do not let doubt and fear choose your next action or reaction. There will always be some doubt in your life, just see it for what it is and move through it as quickly as possible. If you stay in the fear and doubt zone it will most certainly run your life. When you allow fear to rule, you will be living your life as someone else wants you to live and not as your Divine self. You as a Divine being have the choice of what you want to do and how you do it. You can choose to stay locked up inside of your comfort zone or bust out and live the life you have been dreaming about. It is all up to you. I say let's give resistance a hug, ask it what you can learn from it, thank it for coming, and then send it on its' way. Absence of resistance is you aligning yourself with Source. Most of us never align with our true power because we were not taught that there is power in simply allowing and letting go.
Our life does not have to be one of struggle and hardship. We do not have to sacrifice to get what we want. Struggle and sacrifice often work against us in our quest for success. The interesting and wonderful thing is that just on the other side of fear and resistance is something wonderful that you want. Allow the Divine to work through you in joy and happiness. Your ability to listen to your Divine Guidance and take action - even baby steps will help you to dissolve your fears and be on your way to living a life of Unlimited Possibilities.
Start Thinking Good Health, Abundance, Prosperity, Happiness, Joy and Love. Think Success in all you do.
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A Short Prayer That All Is Well
Feel free to change these words to suit your particular needs.
Today I declare my truth. I am a Divine being; I am a happy, healthy, prosperous soul, conscious of my own Spirituality. I am free from fear and worry. The Divine flows through me, and I easily manifest all my wants and dreams. I am right this very moment perfect as I am. I am free from all limiting beliefs about my health, my finances, my prosperity and my business success. I am here to serve, and I do it with joy and happiness. I am surrounded by beautiful people and lovely things. I allow the Spirit of truth to lead me to my own best and highest good. This is now my truth, and so it is.
CHAPTER 2
How Much Time Do You Spend Arguing For Your Self-Imposed Limitations?
"Believe in poverty, and you will be poor. Believe in wealth, and you will be rich. Believe in love, and you will have love. Believe in health, and you will be healthy." ~ Napoleon Hill
Life is all about change. This is true because if you are as good as you're ever going to be, your life is now as good as it will ever get. These are profound words, words to think about and live by. Life is ALL about change, yet most people do not like change; I will even go as far as saying that most people fear change. They fear the unknown and will spend their entire life arguing for their own self-imposed limitations so as not to have to face their fears and make those changes.
I received a phone call one day that really got me thinking about how much time and energy many of us spend arguing for our self-imposed limitations. This woman went into great detail about why she could not do something that she supposedly really wanted to do. As I listened, she went on to tell me how she was sure that the entire Universe was conspiring against her. She went into vivid detail about what was wrong in her life and why it would never change. Along with the long list of details she kept saying "if only I could do something about it, but there is simply nothing that can be done." This lady had convinced herself that she was a victim. She was really good at it too. She truly believed everything that she said and was ready to argue all of her points to the death. At very the end of this monolog, she stated "I am not making excuses. I am just telling you how my life is."
